In his Democracy Day Speech, Friday, June 12, 2026, President Bola Tinubu observed that “for 27 unbroken years… Nigerians have chosen their leaders through the ballot box, witnessed peaceful transitions of power, and resolved disagreements in courtrooms and legislative chambers—not through violence”.
When he added, “We have experienced the longest stretch of civilian rule in our history,” and that “Our democracy is not perfect, but… we must … strengthen it,” and that “we have a duty to… deepen the democratic institutions for which (our heroes) fought,” he struck a chord.
The ghost of the argument that Nigeria was running a “civilian tyranny” and not a “democratic” system rang through, revealing several pointers that those in Nigeria’s politics are acting like predators who have captured the state and now run it to the exclusion of the citizens.
His admonishment, “The greatest tribute we can pay (to our heroes past) is to build a Nigeria where freedom is protected, justice is upheld, opportunity is expanded, and government is accountable,” should have been addressed to the political elite who have inflicted several years of neglect, mismatched policies and larceny, and not to Nigerians.
